Abstract

The objectives of the present study were to determine iron nutritional status among female Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) students and the differences in dietary iron
intake between respondents with and without anaemia. A total of 436 female UMS students of aged 19-26 years were recruited in this study. Iron nutritional status was
determined by measuring haemoglobin concentration via gravimetric technique while dietary intake data was obtained through semi-quantitative questionnaire (FFQ) modified from Malaysian Adults Nutrition Survey (MANS) 2003. Anaemia was
determined using a single biochemical lndicator, which was Hb<12.5g/dL. Prevalence of anaemia was 50.5% in the present study, which was higher than the estimated global prevalence of 30.2%. Most anaemic female students (n=207,94.1%) were
unaware they had Hb<12.5g/dL prior to this study. Malays recorded the highest prevalence of anaemia (53.40%), followed by Kadazans (50.8%) and Chinese (44.5%). The mean dietary iron intake of 14.9±9.3mg corresponded to 74.7% of
the recommended nutrient intake. The difference in mean dietary iron intake between anaemic and non-anaemic respondents was not statistically significant (p=0.126).
Dietary iron intake was also found to be positively correlated to total energy intake (rs=0.889, p<0.001). Primary iron sources of dietary iron was malted beverages
(25.5% of total reported iron intake), followed by grains or cereal products (20.0%)and meat (18.1%). In conclusion, strategies to improve poor iron nutrition status in
female undergraduates need to address promoters and inhibitors of non-haem iron absorption given these main iron intake sources.